Food

This is my mum Tessie’s recipe for her delicious Bragolun or Pulpettun (Meatloaf), which also tastes so good cold the next day sliced in sandwiches, that is if you have any left over …

Ingredients for the Meatloaf

(serves 2-3)

2 large thinly sliced beef slices

200 g minced beef

80g smoked pancetta or bacon

2 Garlic Cloves crushed

Chopped Parsley

2 Hardboiled Eggs

1 Egg, lightly beaten

GF Breadcrumbs (I used 4 Dr Schar Crostini whizzed in Food Processor)

Salt & Pepper

Chilli Flakes (optional)

Salt & Pepper

Ingredients for the Red Wine Sauce

1 large Onion sliced

2 Garlic Cloves crushed

1 Carrot finely diced

1 Stalk Celery finely diced

1 cup Red Wine

1 tsp Gluten Free Beef Stock Powder

1 cup water

2 Bay Leaves

Dash Curry

Dash Mixed Spice

Dash Chilli

1tbsp Tomato Paste

Pinch Sugar

Couple of sprigs of Fresh Thyme

Freshly Chopped Parsley

Method

Start with the stuffing, by mixing the mince meat, the pancetta, the breadcrumbs, the garlic and parsley, salt & pepper and chilli if using and then add the beaten egg and combine the ingredients well together.

Take the sliced meat and beat with a mallet to make it thinner. Put the two slices next to each other, but overlapping. Take the filling and place on the meat slices. Make two indentations in the filling and put the hard boiled eggs, covering with more filling. Roll up the slices tightly around the filling and secure with either toothpicks or special elasticated bands or string.

Brown the Pulpettun on all sides in a large enough pan, and then place in a baking dish. In the same oil, sauté the onions, add the carrots and celery and then add the garlic. Cook until soft. Add the red wine, the tomato paste, pinch sugar, the bay leaves, the spices, stock, water and the fresh thyme. Bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat, simmer for a few minutes and then pour over the Pulpettun in the baking tray.

Cover it with foil and put in a preheated oven (150 deg C). Leave to cook for about one and a half hours. Uncover and leave for another 10 minutes.

Take out the Pulpettun and leave to rest on a dish until you make the sauce. Reduce the sauce if it is a bit liquidy over the stove in the same metal dish over high heat, and thicken it by adding a tsp of cornflour mixed with water. Once it thickens, stir in the chopped parsley.

Slice the Pulpettun and place on plates, spooning the sauce over the slices.